Stoker



Get 14 1924.

A. O. JACKSON STOKER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 22. 192] hm. mm

Oct. 14. 192

A. O. JACKSON STOKER Filed April 22, 192] 2 Sheets-Sheet- 2 Patented Oct. 14, 1924.

UNITED STATES ANDREW O. JACKSON, OF OREGON CITY, OREGON.

STOKEB.

Application filed Aprl122, 1921. Serial No. 403,4.

To all whom it may comem:

Be it known that I, ANDREW O.-.JACKSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Oregon City, in the county of Glackamas and State of Oregon, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Stokers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to means for antomatically feeding fuel to furnaces and has for its object the provision of simple apparatus by which the fuel will be deposited upon the ate bars and permitted to accumulate t ereon so as to fill the discharge end of the fuel-feeding member and there- 1 by cut-off the flow of air to the combustion chamber, except as the same may enter between the grate bars. The invention is designed more particularly for use in connection with cut fuel such as small wooden 2 blocks, chips, sawdust, or similar material. One object of the invention is to provide means whereby the fuel will be fed as needed, and a still further object of the invention is to provide automatic means for controlling the feed of fuel.

The invention is fully illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a view, partly in elevation and partly in section, showing the device as ap- 80 lied to a furnace, an electric motor circuit eing shown di ammatically; I

Fig. 2 is a etail section through the fuel bin illustrated in 1;

Fig. 3 is a plan view 0 the driving mechanism;

Fig.- 4 is a detail section on the line 4-4 of Flg 1;

Fig. 5 is a detail of a portion of the motor-controlling mechanism; Fig. 6 is a detail of a tappet or cam;

Fi 7 is a..detail section of a portion of the riving mechanism.

In the drawin the reference numeral 1 indicates a fuel in which may be of any desired dimensions and form and is illustrated mainly in a conventional manner. This bin is 1provided with downwardly converging wa s, as indicated at 2, and also is provided with downwardly converging floor members 3. The floor members 3 are hinged at their upper ends to side walls of the bin and their lower edges are spaced apart, as shown clearly in Flg. 2. A trough 4 is arranged belowthe space between the floor members 3 and receives the fuel passing through said space, said trough, as shown most clearly in Fig. 2, having downwardly converging side members or wings whereby the fuel is directed to the conve or 5 disposed longitudinally in the trou At the sides of the conveyor and below t e same are shafts 6 journaled in any convenient supports such as ts or blocks 7 and upon each shaft 6 is a cam 0r tappet 8 upon which rides the lower end of a pitman 9 depending from the respective floor member 3. As the cams or tappets 8 rotate with the shafts 6, the pitmen 9 bearin u on the cams or tappets will be raise an then released so that the floor members 3 will be vibrated or agitated and the fuel maintained in a proper condition for ready flowing to the trough and the conveyor therein. The conveyor 5 is illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 as of spiral formation and it extends into the firebox 10 of the furnace, indicated conventionally at 11, as will be readily understood. The trough 4 is covered between the bin and the furnace and the motor-controlling mechanism is mounted upon the covered portion of the trough. To actuate the conveyor, I preferably employ an electric motor, indicated conventionally at 12, the shaft of which is connected by a belt 13 with a pulle 14 loosely mounted upon the drivi sha 15, which is between and parallel with the driven shafts 6, and said shaft 15 is coupled with the conveyor shaft 16 by, a universal joint 17 so that the conveyor may be set at any desired angle relative to the driving shaft, as will be readily understood.

Upon that end of the trough which is disbox of the furnace, I secure a collar 18 having a lip or flange 19 on its upper side and to the said flange or lip I secure the forwardly projecting plate 20 to the edges of which are hinged the longitudinall disposed fuel idlng win s 21. The p ate 20 extends slig tly beyon the inner ends of the wings 21 and to the extended end of the plate 20 I pivotally secure a governor plate 22. This governor plate 22 is adapted to bear upon the fuel accumulating upon the grate. bars 23- and it is constructed with an arm 24 extending approximately radially from its pivot. A base plate 25 18 secured upon the upper side of the trough between posed Within the combustion chamber or fire the bin and the furnace, and a bracket 26 rises from and is secured to the said base plate and has its upper end rigidly secured to the side of the bin or other nxed support, as shown in Fig. 1. The bracket 26 carries the motor-controlling switch which may be of any suitable construction and is illustrated as comprising the terminals 27 and 28 and a blade 29 pivoted to the terminal 27 and adapted to engage the terminal 28. Conductors 30 connect the terminals 27 and 28 with the motor and with a source of electric energy. Upon the base plate 25, T pivotally mount the yoke 31, and an extensible connecting rod 32 has one end pivotally secured to the said yoke and its opposite end pivoted to the arm 24, as clearly shown in Fig. 1. A. weighted lever 33 is pivotally mounted upon the pin 34: which constitutes the pivotal connection between the yoke 31 and the base plate 25 and this lever extends above and through the open upper end of the yoke. The lever is equipped with a lateral pin or stud 35 playin in a slot 36 formed longitudinally in the link 37 which is pivoted to the handle end of the blade 29;

In Fig. 1, the wings 21 and the controlling plate 22 are shown as resting upon fuel 38 and the plate 22 is shown in an intermediate position. As the fuel continues to accumulate, it will cause the said plate to swing upwardly within the fire box and the connectingrod 32 will be thereby caused to move rearwardly, the movement of the connecting rod causing the yoke 31 to rock rearwardly upon the pivot 34. The end of the yoke will, of course, engage the lever 33 and will cause the lever to swing with the yoke until the lever has passed a vertical plane, whereupon the weight will cause the latter to move at once toward the switch and carry the stud 35 against the rear end of the slot 36 and thereby actuate the link 37 so that the blade 29 will be carried away from the terminal 28 and the motor circuit broken. The operation of the feeding mechanism will be thereby obviously arrested and the feeding of fuel will cease. As the fuel is consumed, however, the plate 22 will move downwardand in so moving will rock the yoke 31,

l the rear end of the yoke engaging the lever 33 so that the lever will move with the yoke until it has again passed a vertical plane,

whereupon the weight of the lever will carry it quickly forward and shift the stud 35 to the opposite end of the link 36 and consequently swing the blade 29 into engagement with the terminal 28. The motor circuit will thus be again closed and the motor will be set in motion so that the feeding of fuel will be resumed. It will thus be seen that the fuel will be fed into the burner as it is needed but only as it is needed and it will also be readily noted that the fuel will cover the mouth or exit end of the trough and driving shaft and is held against endwise movement by stop collars 63 as will be readily understood. A gear 64: is mounted loosely on one of the shafts 6 and is keyed to or formed integral with the hub 65 of a pinion 66, the said gear and pinion being held from endwise movement by stop collars 67. Meshing with the pinion 66 is a gear 68, the hub of which is loose on the driving shaft and is constructed at its inner end to form a ratchet clutch 69 cooperating with a similar ratchet clutch 70 on the outer end of a pinion 71 keyed upon the driving shaft. The pinion 71 meshes with gears 72 secured upon the shafts 6 and a spring 73 holds the clutch' members 69, 70 normall in engagement.

The pinion 66 is elongate so as to remain in train of gearing to the clutch hub 69 which then engages the clutch hub 7 0 and directl actuates the same, the conveyor driving sha 15 and the agitator shafts 6 being thus driven at slow speeds but with high power.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. In a stoker, the combination of a tubular body enterin the fire box of a furnace, a conveyer in said body operable to feed fuel to and through the end of said body, a motor for driving said conveyer, a switch controlling said motor, a governor plate hingedly mounted on the end of the body and bearing by gravity upon the 'fuel fed therethrough, a Weighted rocking lever mounted at a point between the governor plate and the switch, a lost-motion connection between the lever and the switch and a lost-motion connection between the governor plate and the lever whereby the operation of the motor will be determined by the height of the fuel in the fire box.

2. In a stoker, the combination of a tubular body entering the fire box of a furnace, a conveyer in said bod operable to feed fuel to andthroug'h the en of said bod a motor for driving said conveyer, a switc control- 1 ling said motor, a governor plate mounted 1&0

on the end of the body and arranged to hear gitudinal slot and a pin on the lever playupon the fuel fed therethrough, a yoke pivmg in said slot to engage the end walls oted on the body, a rod connecting the yoke thereof as the lever is rocked and thereby 10 with the governor plate, a weighted lever open and close the switch.

5 pivoted in the yoke coaxially therewith to In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

be actuated by the end walls thereof, a link extending from the switch and having a lon- ANDREW O. JACKSON. [1 5.] 

